Hello again peons. No doubt you thought I was dead (or at least wished it, just a little bit) well, sadly, I'm here once again to crush your dreams and make you submit to yet more of my wordy, words. You know that you love it.

Obviously last month was a major coup, what with having Phil Harrison here (aka Kairi, because I like messing with you.......PSYCHOLOGICALLY), so this month I thought I'd give us all a bit more time to relax by just answering ALL the questions myself using either yes/no/yo mama. But even THAT seemed far too taxing so I figured I'd do what we always do and punish one of our more resilient members with my ridiculous questions.

Yay!

So here for your viewing pleasure we have The Deadly Dog, resident member of the guide team, subscriber and part wolf (with a side order of rabies). Let's hope he's had all of his shots as I really cannot afford another trip to the vets.........

Welcome to the spotlight! Introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about yourself. (THIS IS A QUESTION - don't ignore it like Shinobi did. That devil man.)

Just wanted to start out by thanking the roll of the dice over at random.org for coupling this honor (Editors note: I love how people think this is a reward. YOU FOOLS!) with the month of my birth as the competition was stiff. My name is Geoff (pronounced Jeff) and pronounced by anyone who knows me as Ge-off or as Mr. Tucker called me in 11th grade AP English… Godfree. Most people know me as Dog, Deadly, TDD, or any combination or lack-there-of consisting of my name; although I haven’t heard anyone call me THE DEADLY DOG in full since probably my Socom days oddly enough. I’m rambling, apologies although it’ll happen throughout this entire interview. A little bit about myself?

I’ve been playing video juegos (Editors note: this means games, kids. See we're learning stuff and being entertained. IT'S A TWO FER!) for as long as I can remember. I vaguely recall and am told about the days sitting on my dad’s lap playing on a green monitor pushing the buttons that came up on the screen. That began my love-addiction to games and electronics that has only grown and become a more important part of my life as the years progressed. I think one of the most memorable things people note about me is the fact that I am a full blown nerd who loves to weightlifting, run, exercise, and is perusing a career in law enforcement. There is nothing better than working out and seeing the looks on people’s faces when I’m out squatting, out pressing, or out running a meathead in the gym with a Justice League shirt on. I still haven’t decided what the girls say when they look over and whisper, but I’m assuming it’s pure confusion.

Before we go any further I have to point out that you are a Park Ranger. All I can now think of is you chasing Yogi Bear around in order to make him cease and desist with all that picnic basket theft. So.........is that what you do? Be honest (don't kill my dreams though).

Ahh the best way I can describe it is with Smokey the Bear. The people stateside should know who he is, although I’m unsure if the folks across the pond know of him. Nice bear, class act. I could let you fish around for an answer as to what I do, but first you need to have a permit and a fishing license in the state of New York otherwise we will have a problem. I’ll check those credentials now. But what do I do? Essentially it’s policing and security of the park grounds and the patrons of our parks. I have no set list of things I am to do as it literally varies day-to-day depending on what’s going on. Some days I am writing notices for failure to pay the parking rate, other days I’m dealing with uncooperative patrons not listening to park staff, or even dealing with 16 missing children in a four day period (July 4-July 8).

Funniest way my job has been described to me was by a smart 10 year old who said; “Mr. Ranger you make sure we are all safe, but if we do something bad you make sure we go bye-bye.” I don’t make anyone go “bye-bye,” but I do help them find the exit to the park just fine, haha (Editors note: In my mind this is accomplished with a huge catapult).

I'm assuming part of you reason for being a Park Ranger is down to a love of animals (going by your sig). Is that the case or was there another reason entirely?

Originally I got the job as a summer gig to pay for tuition bills (which over here are enough to castrate an entire herd of buffalo). At the end of the summer my park supervisor asked me if I would be willing to stay on after all other rangers got laid off for the summer (the job is technically seasonal). I took the hit in pay and hours to stay on doing something that I began to love and now want to make my profession. My primary park is actually the world’s largest pedestrian bridge over water (http://www.walkway.org/), (extra side note, if you ever come on over this way be sure to stop by and introduce yourself). For my first two years I dealt with one animal event (incidents which are recorded and submitted to the state) in which we rescued a dog someone chained to a tree on the other side of the park. Unfortunately for the animal lovers among us, or those who think Park Rangers are lost in the woods all the time, the only animals I saw a majority of my shift are the people that swarm from New York City that subsequently desolate our nice parks so I suppose it depends on what type of animal we are referring to.

You also have a love of history. That covers, well, a LOT. So are we talking specific periods of time?

History has always been the one subject of academia that I have never had a problem with. I gobble it all up and then churn it out like a machine in every facet of my life, and much to my family’s’ dismay, at nauseating levels that make them wonder where all the information goes. Funny side note, and something I hear often, is that I have a huge head. During my football years I had to have a helmet custom made because I didn’t fit into the XL ones so I guess the jokes about it all being stored up in my big head are justified ha (Editors note: Holy crap, ME TOO. We could be related. I have yet to find a hat that fits my big old noggin. It's my secret shame). Specific periods of time though?! That’s like asking a music/movie/game buff to tell you what their favorite song/movie/game is. Blasphemy.

I favor military history, the American Civil War, Greek Mythology, and WWII, to name but a few of my focuses. There is very little history I cannot get into and cannot absorb, although if I have to throw one section, or rather style of teaching history, it would have to be teaching a class with such a bias that you avoid complete aspects of the past to prove a point.

Keeping with that historical bent, if there was any era or location you could live in, explore and learn more about, when/where would that be?

But there are so many to choose from… why just one?! Man that’s like getting teeth implants (they drill into your jaw-bone by the way). Honestly I would go back to the American Civil War. I wish I could live through the drama, the emotions, and the momentous swings that defined the United States. I also wish I could hear the Rebel Yell first hand although my Civil War teacher my senior year did a Rebel Yell so well it sent shivers down my spine so I could only imagine in a full charge what it would feel like.

Back on topic. How did you come up with your gamertag?

Wait.. we were off topic that whole time? Rut ro. (Editors note: I'm always off topic, but we SHOULD talk about games I guess)

For Christmas I got a PS2 and a copy of the game I had spent tons of hours playing at my friend’s house, Socom II: U.S. Navy Seals. I was so excited I ran into the study and put everything together to get on and start playing ASAP. Unintentionally I stirred up the unbeknownst puppy that was sleeping in the hallway. He didn’t rear his head in the room until I was thoroughly stumped on what I should call myself. I had no idea; 16 characters, any order, any symbols, no restrictions aside from curse words, back when you really could make your user unique. Needless to say ignoring the puppy was a bad idea as he now pulled on my shirt trying to get my attention. I shooed him away and literally said “Cody you’re such a deadly dog” and that’s when it dawned on me. THE-DEADLY-DOG. That was in 2004 and it has been my handle ever since for everything from Runescape to x360a to the thousands of hours spend on Socom.

What first brought you to x360a, and then what made you stick around and subscribe?

I still remember what did it for me all those years ago. I was scouring the inter-webz for some help on “Mile High Club” in CoD 4 and found help on x360a. I then spent the following 3 years using the crap out of x360a but always being too afraid join. Chalk it up to a rough childhood, but I finally built up the courage in Jan of 2012 and decided to stop lurking and try my hand at being a community member. As we history fanatics say “the rest is just history.” I stuck around because I loved being judged on the person I am not the person people see and quickly make judgments on without knowing. I don’t know why exactly I started subscribing, but I was ahead on all of my bills, ahead on payments, and had money to support something that I was coming to love more and more by the day. If worse came to worse I could mug… err.. I mean work hard for the $10 to keep subbing. (Editors note: Well I know Creech rents out his body, so I suppose mugging would be fine too. We take money from ANYWHERE!)

You currently help out with the Guide Writing team, a sometimes thankless task. Care to set the record straight about what you guys do?

Yeah I don’t know how that even happened. I should thank my favorite deity, the Greek Goddess of the wild, Artemis for allowing the stars to align in such a way that I was given a chance to work. Honestly our work is secondary to that of the community to construct G&RMs worth having a Guide Team for. Sure I sit and complain from time to time how people don’t put their punctuation inside the quotation marks, forget their grammar skills, or how it soaks hours of my time trying to perfect and decipher what people are trying to demonstrate in a game I’ve never played, but thankless, that might be a stretch. If you take pride in your community than nothing you do could be considered thankless.

In essence we take what you write, refine it, polish it, and let you revel in the fame as thousands of people use your work to help themselves. That’s a freaking good feeling, let me tell you.

My motivation is simply that person who helped me back in the CoD 4 days. Ever since then each G&RM I do has to be bigger and better than the last because even if I’m only able to help one person, that’s one more Geoff that can sit back and smile because he was able to conquer his hardest achievement. I haven’t done a whole lot of G&RMs, but I believed I’ve developed not only a style, but a rapport with people seeing my name tied to a guide.

Any games you wish you could have had a hand in doing the guide for, or maybe something you've gotten your eye on in future?

More than anything I have my eye on GTA V. Depending on what goes on with a police academy in November I may or may not try my hand at it. I have a sinking feeling that throngs of writers may take to the streets of GTA V to try their shot at it so we’ll have to see how everything goes.

Is the 360 your only current console? What others have sharpened your gaming skills over the years?

The 360 is certainly not my only console. I do a little gaming on my laptop (mostly Runescape), and own a PS3 of which I’ve been playing some Last of Us (although before that the Playstation was solely for Socom), an N64 for classic reunion night with some old friends on Super Smash Bros, and the whole slew of older goodies like the PS2, Xbox, Gameboys, and DS.

What is your gaming setup (pics if you've got 'em)?

No pic no proof? (Editors note: That's what the ladies always tell me, dammit.)
I would do a bigger, wider picture, but everything is a mess in here while I’m creating new shelving for my collection of games and movies. Special thanks to UCanCallMeDucky for showing me the error of my previous way of displaying my collection.http://imageshack.us/a/img109/4389/ygu5.jpg

When you're picking the next game to grace your console, do you go for game play or achievements first?

It’s all about the game. Achievements can be earned no matter what, but you better be able to enjoy the game in order to spend money on it—especially when you work for each penny. Although I certainly will avoid games with unobtainable, unrealistic, or unfair achievements if they are not in my preferred genres or styles.

Everyone has a 360 game they can't get enough of, what’s yours?

Everyone loves grinding 100+ hours of Spartacus right? Oh seriously. I would say as of late it has to be Defiance. I was putting in ridiculous hours into the game and enjoying every second of it and cannot wait for them to pop out some DLCs—it’ll be the motivation I need to start playing it again. (Editors note: Now kids, this is what happens when we have too much sugar. We think games like Defiance are fun. And I have 1k in Defiance and I'VE SUFFERED ENOUGH! Ahem, I mean everyone is entitled to their opinion.........)

Out of all of the games you played (on any system), which was your favourite?

Socom II
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.
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Oh an explanation? Bah. To me it was/is/will be the greatest shooter ever to grace video games. It was in depth, it was dynamic, and it was addicting. I put more time into that game than I have ever put into anything Runescape excluded. Simply put it was magical.

Well, there has to be a few games that you didn't like. Which ones were the worst?

I try my hardest not to play games I can’t even minimally enjoy, but I have to say Spartacus Legends is becoming a burden. Without spending money, 100+ hours of grinding literally the same thing over and over and over has made me hardened to the game. I guess I would also say, going back in time, NFL Head Coach series for the PS2 really shot me down from my cloud of love for American Football spin offs.

Admit it, there must be a few games you played just to hear that wonderous achievement unlocked sound? NAME AND SHAME THEM!!!

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs
Disney Pixar’s Bolt
Open Season

I feel dirty listing this.. Hatters made me do it during the GSL I swear! (Editors note: Keep going, let the pain out.)

Disney Pixar’s Up
FIFA 06
Madden 06
MLB 2K6
Jumper

I’m done I cannot bare to look anymore. These are my most shameful. My laundry is on the table. (Editors note: Strangely you just listed most of my Top 10 Bestest games of All Time and Space).

On that topic, what achievement(s) are you most proud of?

I would be a bloody liar if I didn't say Mile High Club was not my number one most proud achievement. I mean it got me here didn’t it? Auf Wiedersehen Petrovic is a close second coming from GTA IV. Once I finish Spartacus this 50 fame achievement will definitely join the clubo.

Not every game with quick points is easy to complete. Are there any games that you are giving up on or left in the dust?

Giving up on no, leaving in the dust yes. On the way to being worked on are Forza 2 and Dragon Ball Z Burst Limit with Guitar Hero III being lost somewhere in between the local incinerator and my to-do list.

Any games that makes you scream (in frustration/rage or fear)?

Did you say Spartacus Legends and Guitar Hero III? Oh you did…did you? So much senseless rage.

If you could wipe one game franchise clean of the face of the Earth, which would it be?

So long as I have your word that I won’t be hung from the next gallows we can get rid of the Guitar Hero franchise. I love playing around and pretending I know how to play the guitar, but some of the achievements those sick human beings devise are cruel and unusual and I’m fairly sure they violate the Geneva Convention regulations on war.

Do you care that most games nowadays seem to be rehashes? If you could choose would you go for a new IP or something familiar?

Rehashes can be done properly and can be just as fun as IPs so I do not care one bit that many games appear to be drawn on from previous titles. I’m a guy who would love to see some of the old goodies (*cough* Socom) revived and done right instead of seeing 100 new shooter games come out.

We all know gaming goes on till the early morning. What do you eat and drink to keep the reflexes sharp all night?

I drink water like a fish, and chew on tons and tons of gum to keep myself from eating food. When things get really rough, like they have gone for the past 4 Tuesday nights (failing the Moon Easter Egg in BLOPS) I will break out the Root beer, the pizza bites, the 2:00AM fruit salads and gorge on it all.

I'm assuming some of those late night sessions included some achievement boosting. Any good/bad/memorable experiences you can regale us with? Were staff involved?

I’ve been trying to get the Moon Easter Egg achievement in BLOPS for the past month now every Tuesday with the same group of guys. It’s been such a fun time even though we’ve failed time and time again. The laughs, the moments, and the companionship make it worth it every time.

You have any particular online buddies that you hang out with regularly? Or any that have gone AWOL and you pine for like a lonely wolf?

My crew from Moon Egg hunting has become usual hangout buddies. I’m much more of a loner than people make me out to be so “hanging out” hasn’t always been an easy task for me.

Naked gaming - good or the stuff of nightmares?

Ever since Papa Creech caught me red pawed I’ve been hesitant on making a public opinion related to the matter. I will therefore defer to my lawyer who reminds me to plead the 5th (Editors note: Luckily we always keep the pics. Just in case).

What was the last thing you purchased on the arcade? Worth it?

The Walking Dead 400 Days. Worth it? Man of course it was worth it! Worth every penny and then some.

Do you purchase/enjoy DLC? Or see it as a vicious cash cow to be ignored?

I purchase, purchase, purchase. They are a very pretty cash cow which must be carefully and gingerly milked for each delicious drop of GS. Tell me that didn’t leave an image in your head of confusion and happiness haha. (Editors note: Nope. What I do have is the number of a good therapist.)

As a fan of history (and wrangling bears) do you think there are any eras that have been overlooked when it comes to games?

Military history prior to the split of Rome into Western and Eastern or even history from 800BC-1200AD is full of intense and important military history. The history there is of such a nature that not only would a dev have a ton of liberty to work off of the facts, but even more leeway to add to the pre-existing conditions. To name a few specific groups and names that could see promising games: 1) Attila the Hun 2) Ancient Rome 3) The Mongols 4) Saladin 5) The Crusades and the curveball… Indians of North America and South America (they aren’t Native Americans because they are not Native to America, took an 3 credit class on them haha).

On a similar vein any periods of time that need to be left alone for a while (we're ALL looking at you WW2)?

Well I do suppose WW2 can stop being fondled for a bit, but if you do it right, replaying the same great scenes is fun. I’m a history buff, I can’t say one particular part should be left alone, I love it all too much.

Or maybe we need a Park Ranger Simulator? Would that be the pinnacle of gaming or a snooze fest? What achievements would you recommend?

I don’t know about the pinnacle of gaming, but it would give people a whole new respect for those of us that are serving them instead of being with our families on the holidays and weekends. Everyone would be pros at writing notices and tickets, evicting unhappy patrons and non-compliant violators, dealing with domestic disturbances and missing children, administering first aid, and best of all, knowing where to hide in your park when you need a break.

As far as the achievements go they would also have to be realistic. Doing a successful parks event, writing an incident report, safely dealing with a domestic abuse report, finding a missing child, attempting to track down lost hikers, dressing up as Smokey The Bear and harassing the patrons who light fires in no fire zones, and the crown jewel of them all—chasing naked concert goers through a golf course while they are high on drugs at a PHISH concert. (Editors note: We just created a new genre here. I call dibs.)

I notice you've snagged someones Staff Club award (and made your own). Why did you choose THOSE particular games? Personal nostalgia or pride?

I went for Clueless’s because she was the one who taught me how to be in the Guide Team. Call that nostalgia. My games have a nice little backstory behind them which sits comfortably in spoiler tags because like anything else, I ramble like a mad man. I’m hoping to add one more massive completion sometime by the end of the year which will round out my club nicely. Ultimately my game choices came down to what I was most proud of and what I wanted to best represent me.

Be honest now, The Cursed Crusade is a bad version of Assassins Creed, admit it?

Nah. The Cursed Crusade is a low budget attempt at hack-and-slash coupled with… err… history! (Editors note: I'll be honest, I based my opinion on seeing the game cover one time in a store, from an angle, in dubious lighting.)The game is linear to the tenth degree unlike AC, but is fun because I don’t even remember the last time I heard of someone doing a crusade game.

Which game(s) are you most eagerly awaiting?

B A R 4 D. Let them know. - - - GTA V without a doubt in my mind.

If you could add ONE thing/feature to the site, what would it be?

More expansive and interactive player profiles. No idea what the extra details would entail but that would be one thing I would love to see happen.

If you were Admin of the site for a day, what would you do?!

Court of Deity DEADLY DOG the Wise would be in session all day. The peasants… I mean members of x360a would be able to a plea… I mean make a case for something they want to see happen or desire. Court would be open all day and at the end of the day we will have Scotty beam us up so we may begin our journey to collect the dragon balls!

Any closing remarks?

First off, jack, that message when I first got it looked a lot like an elaborate way to say you just got banned—I was scared ha. Just wanted to say thanks to jack though for hosting me this magical month and deciphering the rambling of a mad man into material the ladies, gents, and Gackerz (Editors note: Is that what we are calling Gackt's fanclub now?) of x360a can consume. Had a ton of fun writing this up and hope you all had a ton of fun reading it. I suggest everyone try their hand at Achievement Guide and RoadMap writing which will help to increase the diversity, the popularity, and the prestige of this community. And who knows, you may see a picture of a dog on your wall letting you know it just went live!
~Live Long and Prosper~

So there you have it. Another lovely interview though, sigh, he did end with a Star Trek quote. It's like he's trying to make us all look like nerds or something. Also I only knew it was from Star Trek because someone told me.......maybe. Ok, no one sees the answers but me so that is a BLATANT lie. Damn.

Nice read Dog! If there ever is a Park Ranger Simulator game made, I'll play it!

I may avoid it. 40+ hours a week is enough rangering for me.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DEG23

Only You - 10
Successfully prevent a forest fire

Thoroughly enjoyed this interview Geoff. You've got me thinking of all the history based games I'd like to see in the coming years. Out of curiosity, are you looking at getting Ryse?

Shirtless, Shrunken, High as the Sky - 5
Successfully ran down two high concert goers in the golf course only to realize they don't have clothes and need a ride in your vehicle. Does the car wash do cleaning services?

I'm definitely interested in Ryse, I had it on my wishlist when it was only supposed to be an arcade title haha.

Court of Deity DEADLY DOG the Wise would be in session all day. The peasants… I mean members of x360a would be able to a plea… I mean make a case for something they want to see happen or desire. Court would be open all day and at the end of the day we will have Scotty beam us up so we may begin our journey to collect the dragon balls!

soooo, i'm assuming this is a star trek reference and not a lil' shout-out to everyone's favourite site-base Scottyoh well...

Congratulations on the spotlight and great interview Dog; it was very interesting to read! =D The park ranger simulator sounds like fun, and you came up with some awesome achievements! Someone should contact a game developer to make a game like that! XD

Congratulations on the spotlight and great interview Dog; it was very interesting to read! =D The park ranger simulator sounds like fun, and you came up with some awesome achievements! Someone should contact a game developer to make a game like that! XD

I could only imagine being at the pitch sale for that game haha. Well sir, Smokey would approve and our ratings for State Parks would skyrocket!